Monday, May 30, 2011

February is not the month that I usually yearn to be in Salt Lake City. Maybe if I were into skiing or snowboarding instead of genealogy, I would feel differently. We do own two weeks in a time share there. However, it is within a five minute walk from the Family History Library and somewhat distant from the slopes. Generally, I plan to be in Salt Lake for a week around Easter when the tulips are dazzling in Temple Square and another week in the late summer or early fall.

A new conference may cause me to reassess my Salt Lake schedule. RootsTech Family History and Technology Conference will only be in its second year this February 2-4, 2012. The first rendition got rave reviews from everyone I have heard from who attended. The call for presentations for next year is already out. If you don’t know about this conference and you enjoy combining new technology with your family history research, you definitely should check it out.

The call for presentations says:

The second annual RootsTech Conference brings genealogy technology users and consumer technology creators together to learn, collaborate, and shape the future of family history. Genealogy technology users at this conference are progressive, forward-thinking, and early adopters of devices and tools that simplify family history research.

Special emphasis will be placed on submissions that find ways for genealogy technology users and technology creators to work and interact together. Particular consideration will also be given to proposals that provide a hands-on or interactive experience, with presenters giving step-by-step approaches to using technology, software, hardware, algorithms, APIs, plug-ins, extensions, etc.

Possible session topics include:

·GPS and geo-mapping

·Mobile Devices

·Social applications

·Imaging and visualization

·Gamification

·Cloud-based solutions

You can see the quality and diversity of speakers who presented at the inaugural conference this past February. If you have never been to a genealogy conference in Salt Lake, I need to warn you to prepare for the guilt. If you attend all the sessions, you will feel guilty about ignoring all your ancestors who will be calling you from the Family History Library a couple of blocks away. If you go to the library, you will feel guilty about all the good presentations you are missing. My advice is to plan to stay a week and devote time to both learning and research.

2 comments:

Much unintentional laughter caused by a minor spelling error. However, in all seriousness, your last sentence is great advice. I went to RootsTech this year, which was also my first trip to Salt Lake City. I didn't miss any sessions at the conference, because they had extended hours at the library for attendees. I ended up closing the place down every night, but still didn't get my to-do list finished.